1. Technical Field
The invention relates to an apparatus and method for utilizing still spherical or high resolution flat images to provide a moving tour through the image that creates the perception on the part of the user of experiencing a video presentation. The invention allows a multiplicity of predetermined paths to be followed faithfully in such a way as to be replicable. In this invention, an objective is the control of the view shown to the user instead of manipulation of an object, the data is the angle of view, and hardware is a computer monitor. The invention solves a key problem with the transmission of sequenced images (i.e. video) over small bandwidth connections by using a sequence of move commands on the still spherical or high-resolution flat image to imitate a video of an environment or object. Additionally, the subject invention allows the user to take control of the viewing direction at any time and look in any desired direction, giving a new dimension to interactive television, namely, personalized control of what is viewed.
2. Related Art
It is known how to pan, tilt, rotate, and magnify a live video image via a perspective transformation algorithm as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,185,667, assigned to the same assignee as this disclosure. This method captures a live video or still photographic image, removes the distortion associated with the lens optics, and reconstructs a portion of the image that is of interest based on operator requests for pan, tilt, rotation, and magnification. One application of the dewarping technique disclosed by this patent is the dewarping of hemispherical images. The capturing and dewarping of hemispherical images is disclosed in greater detail in U.S. Pat. No. 5,185,667, expressly incorporated herein by reference. The ability to simultaneously distribute these images and allow multiple users to independently view the image in any desired direction is documented and patented in U.S. Pat. No. 5,384,588, assigned to the same assignee as this disclosure and, hereby, incorporated by reference.
Other parent applications, which may be of reference for various parts of the invention described in greater detail below, include the following: U.S. application Ser. No. 08/516,629, filed Aug. 15, 1995, entitled "Method and Apparatus for the Interactive Display of Any Portion of a Spherical Image" of Laban Phelps Jackson, Alexis S. Pecoraro, Peter Hansen, Martin L. Bauer, and H. Lee Martin, which is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 08/494,599, filed Jun. 23, 1995, entitled "Method and Apparatus for Simultaneous Capture of a Spherical Image" of Danny A. McCall and H. Lee Martin, which is a continuation-in-part of a U.S. application Ser. No. 08/386,912 filed Feb. 8, 1995, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/339,663 filed Nov. 11, 1994, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/189,585 filed Jan. 31, 1994 (now U.S. Pat. No. 5,384,588), which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 07/699,366 filed May 13, 1991 (now U.S. Pat. No. 5,185,667). This application is also divisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/742,684 filed Oct. 31, 1996 (now U.S. Pat. No. 5,764,276), which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/373,446 filed Jan. 17, 1995, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/189,585 filed Jan. 31, 1994 (now U.S. Pat. No. 5,384,588).
Video images, as described in each of the above-referenced patents, require approximately 30 frames per second to appear as a real-time video image. Unfortunately, a problem with real-time video rates is the great amount of memory and processing speed required to display these images. Alternatively, if a user wanted to download a real-time video clip from a distant source via a modem (for example, a bulletin board system or a global network of computers), the user must have a high speed modem with a wide bandwidth (for example, a minimum 128 kps ISDN line or a T1 or a T3) with a relatively powerful computer to download these images and display them in real-time. As most users do not have high speed modems or relatively powerful computers, not to mention, a bandwidth capable of handling real-time videos, most users are at a disadvantage. Even compressing the video data fails to achieve good results.
Other techniques of transmitting images include transmitting a single still image after single still image. This saves bandwidth but is no more exciting than watching a slide presentation with someone else operating the slide projector. This is because the viewer is presented with a bland, static, two-dimensional image. In a different field of endeavor, a technique is known in the robotics industry which is know as "teach/playback". The "teaching" mode of a "teach/playback" technique relates to the recording of a series of movements of a user controlled device. Later, in the "playback" mode, the recorded movements are played back for subsequent purposes. An instance of the "teach/playback" technique is in the automotive industry where a robot operator "teaches" a robotic system how to perform a complex series of tasks involving various manipulations. For example, the robotic system may be taught how to weld portions of a car's body panels to a car's frame. In the playback mode, the robotic system repeatedly follows its memorized commands and welds body panels to frames as per its instructions. The "teach/playback" technique of programming manipulative systems has its drawbacks. For instance, systems operating under a "teach/playback" technique are inherently limited to perform only the recorded instructions. Variation in the playback of a recorded set of instructions is unheard of. The only way to change the operations of the control device is to reprogram its instruction set, or here, "reteach" the system.